Simpson Game
When a new game is traded in or sold to a game store, that money is then kept by the retailer rather than reaching the hands of the hardworking developer who spent blood, sweat and tears on creating their pride and joy. The same game could be bought and sold numerous times and it can be argued that those purchases are a potential sale which has been stolen from the game companies themselves. It is true that you don't hear the music or film industry complaining about their second-hand losses, but does creating an album or a movie compare to the amount of money and effort spent on developing a Triple-A game title? As always, it is the consumer that decides whether a game is worth its $50 price tag, and often they decide to go with a pre-owned price instead. Gamers aren't new to the idea of receiving bonuses within collectors editions and the like, but more recently we've been seeing a lot of extra freebies within new games or as part of pre-ordering a title. Most of this is in-game DLC, such as new weapons and armor, new maps or various other cosmetic additions which don't actually add that much to the game. In fact, most of this stuff you could probably live without. Simpsons Porn I don't really need the Blood Dragon Armor in Dragon Age Origins and I can live without a tattoo set in Fable 3, thank you very much. I would go as far to say that DLC armor is one of the most pointless examples of a DLC incentive, ever. Although perhaps not as pointless as the Horse Armor from The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion. Now this seems to be an interesting/worrying trend in recent games, delete as appropriate. It all started with EA as they introduced the idea of an 'Online Pass' for some of their major titles, such as Dead Space 2, The Sims 3, Madden NFL 11, etc. This online pass is a one-time code which gives access to online multiplayer functionality within their games. What this means is that you are restricted from playing online unless you either buy the game new, and thus have a pass code, or you spend $10 on acquiring this pass if you're unfortunate enough to buy the game second-hand Now this 'incentive' really does take the cake. In the recent Resident Evil Mercenaries title by Capcom on the 3DS, players are prevented from erasing their save data. This means that the game cannot be started from scratch and appears to be a direct attack against second-hand games. Now, it isn't a big deal in Mercenaries 3D, as this data roughly translates into high scores and some unlockables, but imagine if this system was used in other games, such as an RPG? What if you bought a second-hand game which was already completed? As a result for this move, most rental stores are unwilling to stock Mercenaries 3D. Fact is, not everyone can afford to buy a full priced video game. We're living in tight times, and with some titles selling for as much as $60, for many it's a case of buy cheap or miss out. Some games are quite frankly not worth $50 and are reduced to half price in a matter of weeks. Even digitally distributed titles can cost just as much if not more than their retail counterparts. Pre-owned games are popular because they are cheaper. Simple, really. Whilst it appears that certain game stores are taking advantage of the popularity of used games to maximize their profits, especially as their pre-owned selection seems pretty overpriced anyway, pre-owned titles are also the lifeline for smaller independent retailers that battle against the larger chain stores. Simpsons XXX We all know that choice offers the best deal for customers, whether selling new or used games.